In recent years, there has been a known technology for managing a plurality of databases in a centralized manner, such as the federated configuration management database (federated CMDB), in which databases are virtually federated. For example, the federated CMDB centrally manages the location of data that is managed in existing databases in a distributed manner and provides a user with databases that are managed in a centralized manner.
Furthermore, in some cases, candidate databases for centralized management each store therein the same data; therefore, for example, the federated CMDB merges (also called matching or reconciliation) the same data stored in these candidate databases.
With a conventional federated CMDB, an administrator sets, in advance, a key attribute (called a reconcile key) functioning as a key for a merging process and merging is performed using the key attribute. Specifically, with the assumption that the key attribute is set in the database to be centrally managed, the federated CMDB merges data by determining whether the value of the key attribute matches data that is stored in a newly added database. For example, if the attribute “Internet Protocol (IP) address” is set in advance as the key attribute, the federated CMDB determines data having the same “IP address” value to be the same data and federates the determined data that is determined to be the same.
Of course, there is a database in which a key attribute is not set therein. When merging such a database, the federated CMDB merges data by, for example, by a user manually determining whether the data is the same. Furthermore, for example, after a user resets the key attribute, the federated CMDB re-merges all of the databases by using a key attribute that has been reset. Technologies for a system are disclosed in which multiple databases are federated regardless of database products or types.
Patent Document 1: Japanese National Publication of International Patent Application No. 2007-531941
Patent Document 2: Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2000-122910
However, with the conventional merging method, there is a problem in that merging cannot be easily performed. Specifically, data without using a key attribute cannot be easily merged. In such a case, a user has to determine the identical data, which is a burden for the user. Furthermore, for example, a user has to reset the key attribute, which is also a burden for the user. Furthermore, merging is performed again using a key of the key attribute that has been reset.